Hear Me Sing
by Ben's Niece
Summary: Maximum Batchelder hasn't spoken in ten years, for reasons no one knows. She only uses her voice when she sings. What she doesn't know is that one day her life will change completely. AU. OOC. First story. I suck at summaries, so it's better than it sounds...pinkie-promise...
1. Ch 1 Birthday Surprises

CH. 1. BIRTHDAY SURPRISES.

I woke up like I would any other day, but for whatever reason; I had a strange feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I got up early, before Jeb does, so I have time to do my very necessary routine.

I limped over to my closet, grabbed a random shirt and jeans, and went to the bathroom.

My names is Maximum Batchelder, but call me anything other than Max, you'll lose your ability to reproduce. One thing you should know about me is this; I'm abused. That came out rather blunt, didn't it? Let me explain.

You see, when I was about two, my mother completely abandoned me and my father, Jeb. We had to move to Virginia, Jeb claiming that Arizona reminds him too much of my mom. He was depressed for three years, and then he started drinking when I was five. It started with small slaps and shoves and a bit of verbal abuse here and there, but since I was so young I didn't understand some of what he was saying, but I knew it was bad.

In first grade, when the abuse had been going on for about a year, I tried talking to my school counselor, Anne Walker, about it and she said that she was going to do anything in her power to stop it. But the next day, she wasn't at school.

The principle made an announcement saying that Ms. Walker was found dead last night.

When I got home that day, Jeb was there waiting, and he was sober. He told me that he was the one who killed Anne. He then described the whole murder down to every single, gory, detail. He showed me her tongue, which he had cut off right before she died.

He told me that if I ever spoke to someone about the abuse, he would also cut out my tongue and keep it next to Anne's in the freezer. And ever since that day, I have never spoken a word, unless I was alone or Jeb was asleep or passed out.

The thing about Jeb is that he's smart, even when he's drunk. He knows not to kill me, or hurt me _too_ bad, or else people would get suspicious.

The only thing I have left of my mom is her guitar. /images/I/717ffKHyA8L._SL1500_.jpg. That's the only time Jeb has ever talked about her, and it wasn't something bad. He said that she bought it before I was born, hoping that I would want to play it someday. And I did. For my tenth birthday, Jeb gave it to me, telling me the story also. That was one of the rare days where he was actually sober.

That was exactly six years ago, today. Yep, today is my sixteenth birthday. Most girls would be squealing with joy and excitement. But not me. Yes I am excited, but not for the reason you might think. I only have three more years until I can get out of my hellhole, and take my little brother, Ari, with me.

Ari is the single most adorable and innocent child you will ever meet. Well, technically, he's my half-brother. When I was nine Jeb hooked up with some random bimbo he met at a bar, then nine months later, Bata-bing, Bata-boom, Ari shows up at our doorstep. Now let me tell you, to say Jeb was mad, would be a _huge_ understatement.

Ari is almost like an exact replica of Jeb. Same brown hair and blue eyes. The difference is that Ari's eyes are warm, kind and gentle. While Jeb's are cold, cruel and harsh. I suppose that I look like my mother in some ways, but I don't know. Jeb doesn't have any pictures of her anywhere. I have brown hair that's sun-streaked and dull brown eyes, but Ari begs to differ.

When I was done with my shower, I quickly got dressed and applied my foundation anywhere visible to cover up my bruises and scars.

I went downstairs and made breakfast for Jeb and put a glass of water and an Advil next to it. He was, no doubt, most likely hung-over.

I went back upstairs and got Ari up.

"Mornin', Max," he said groggily. I just smirked back. That's it, no smile or "good morning". I haven't smiled in ten years. Ari understood that I didn't like talking; only singing.

As he went to get dressed, I went back to my room, grabbed my guitar, and went out my window onto the roof that was over the garage. I sat down with my legs dangling over the edge.

It was still early in the morning, so the sun was just barely peaking over the horizon. I was so entranced by the beauty of it; I didn't notice the car pull up. As I was watching the sunrise, I unconsciously started playing and singing a song that I wrote last night…

_(When She Cries by Britt Nicole)_

_Little girl, terrified_

_She'd leave her room if only bruises would heal_

_A home is no place to hide_

_Her heart is breaking from the pain that she feels_

_Every days the same, she fights to find her way_

_She hurts, she breaks, she hides and tries to pray_

_She wonders why_

_Does anyone ever hear her when she cries?_

_Today she's turning sixteen_

_Everyone singing but she can't seem to smile_

_They never get past arm's length_

_How could they act like everything is alright?_

_Pulling down her long sleeves_

_To cover all the memories the scars leave_

_She says, "Maybe making me bleed_

_Will be the answer that could wash the slate clean"_

_Every day's the same; she fights to find her way_

_She hurts, she breaks, she hides and tries to pray_

_She wonders why_

_Does anyone ever hear her when she cries?_

_This is the dark before the dawn_

_The storm before the peace_

_Don't be afraid cause seasons change_

_And God is watching over you, He hears you_

_And every day's the same; she fights to find her way_

_She hurts, she breaks, she hides and tries to pray_

_She'll be just fine_

_'Cause I know He hears her when she cries_

_Every days the same, she fights to find her way_

_She hurts, she breaks, she hides and tries to pray_

_She'll be just fine_

_'Cause I know He hears her when she cries_

_She'll be just fine_

_'Cause I know He hears her when she cries_

When I strung the last note, I saw a car across the street that I've never seen before. _Probably just one of the neighbors,_ I thought.

"Maxi," Ari said as he came out his window and sat next to me (his window is right next to mine). "Can you sing to me?"

_(Save You by Simple Plan)_

_Take a breath, I pull myself together_

_Just another step until I reach the door_

_You'll never know the way it tears me up inside to see you_

_I wish that I could tell you something to take it all away_

_Sometimes I wish I could save you_

_And there's so many things that I want you to know_

_I won't give up till it's over_

_If it takes you forever I want you to know_

_When I hear your voice it's drowning in whispers_

_It's just skin and bones; it's nothing left to take_

_And no matter what I do I can't make you feel better_

_If I only I could find the answer to help me understand_

_Sometimes I wish I could save you_

_And there's so many things that I want you to know_

_I won't give up till it's over_

_If it takes you forever I want you to know_

_That if you fall, stumble down I'll pick you up off the ground_

_If you lose faith in you I'll give you strength to pull through_

_Tell me you won't give up 'cause I'll be waiting_

_If you fall you know I'll be there for you_

_If only I could find the answer to take it all away_

_Sometimes I wish I could save you_

_And there's so many things that I want you to know_

_I won't give up till it's over_

_If it takes you forever I want you to know_

_I wish I could save you, I want you to know_

_I wish I could save you_

"I love you, Maxi."

"I love you, too, munchkin." Ari giggled at that. Ari is the only one who is allowed to call me Maxi. He is also the only one I talk around.

"Excuse me?!" we heard a shout below. We looked down and saw a middle-aged Hispanic looking woman. I jumped down from the roof and went over to meet here. Now, you may be wondering, "How did she do that? Didn't she say she was limping some time ago?" Well, you see, there's a thing called a trash bin, and I managed to land on it and got to the ground from there.

"Hi, my name is Valencia Martinez. Do Jeb and Maximum Batchelder live here?" I eyed her suspiciously, but nodded anyway. "Are you Maximum?" I nodded again. Relief and joy were the only emotions on her face for about two seconds, and then she turned around towards the car, and waved her hand franticly. A girl who looked exactly like her, but about two years younger than me came out and ran towards us.

"Max, may I call you Max? This is my daughter Ella. May we please come inside?" I turned around to look up at Ari and whistled Rue's whistle from my favorite book series The Hunger Games, don't judge! Ari quickly grabbed my guitar and headed back inside. The four note whistle was our secret code, for if we had unexpected visitors, to clean up the place.

I turned back around at the people, held my finger in the universal, one moment please, gesture. After about two minutes, I nodded and headed to the door the confused people following. I grabbed the spare key and unlocked the door.

The first thing that hit me was the smell of alcohol, I didn't gag at it though, since I was used to it. But Valencia and Ella weren't, so they cringed.

As we entered the living room, I noticed that there was much less bottles. Of course Ari wouldn't have enough time to get them all cleaned up that fast, but he still did an incredible job.

Ari was standing in the middle of the room, a bit out of breath with a few small cuts on his hands.

"Would it be alright if we sit down?" Val (I decided to call her that) asked. I, once again, simply nodded. So, we sat.

Me and Ari had a secret language that we use with our hands, so I used that for Ari to speak for me. He doesn't complain, he never does, he understands.

"What's your name? We never got it," Val asked Ari. He looked at me, and I nodded.

"Ari," he replied.

"Nice to meet you, Ari. My name is Valencia, but you can call me Val, and this is my daughter Ella." Ella waved.

I said 'I'll be back with the first-aid kit' with my hands to Ari. He nodded in response. I ran, painfully I might add, silently to the main bathroom, grabbed the kit, and went back to the living room, only to be met by awkward silence.

I kneeled in front of Ari and started wrapping his hands, like I had so many times before. Val and Ella sat and watched as if hypnotized.

I wanted to comment on that _so_ badly, but I learned the hard way to hold my tongue. So I had Ari say it for me.

He giggled before saying, "Why don't you take a picture, it'll last longer?" Val and Ella quickly closed their mouths and looked away when they realized they were staring.

"Max," Val began after I finished wrapping Ari's hands. "There is something important I need to tell you." I raised my eyebrows at her, signaling her to continue.

"Max…I'm your mother."

* * *

_Thanks for reading! This is my first fanfic, so go easy on me... Please, no flames, but critism welcomed._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride or any of the songs protrayed in this story._


	2. Secrets Revealed

_Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride or any of the songs portryed in this story_

* * *

CH. 2. SECRETS REVEALED

_Previously:_

_"__Max," Val began after I finished wrapping Ari's hands. "There is something important I need to tell you." I raised my eyebrows at her, signaling her to continue._

_ "__Max…I'm your mother."_

Dr. M's POV

"Max" I began, unsure as of how to say this. "I'm your mother." Wow.

I waited for her reaction, but her face remained emotionless. Her eyes however, were swirling with them. There was anger, hate, worry, and another emotion that I never wanted her, or Ella, to feel; fear. Was she afraid of me, or was it something else?

Suddenly there was a shout from somewhere in the house.

"MAXIMUM! GET IN HERE, YOU SLUT!"

Was that Jeb? It sounded like him, but his voice was heavy, and his words were stringed together. And what was that about Max being a slut? Max certainly didn't look like one. She was wearing a long-sleeved black shirt and washed out blue jeans. And the only make-up she was wearing was foundation. But why would she need that? Unless… no, it's not possible, is it?

Both Max and Ari froze. Max made gestures with her hands at Ari. He looked hesitant, but he nodded anyway.

Max left to wherever Jeb was and the living room was once again consumed in silence.

During this silence I began thinking; what was Max hiding? Her reaction wasn't what I expected. I certainly didn't expect her to be happy, no. The anger and hate I certainly expected, but I didn't think the hate would be so strong. What had Jeb told her? And what was with her limp? Did she have an accident? Or, did someone do that to her?

I was suddenly jolted out of my thoughts by a _crash, _a _thud_ and a ripping sound.

Ari looked anxious and seemed contemplating something for a moment before running out. I looked at Ella and followed Ari. Without looking back, I knew she was following me.

Ari led us to the kitchen/dining room area where there was a sight that made me want to throw up and extremely angry at the same time.

There was broken glass from what looked like a beer bottle and a torn up shirt that looked like Max's. And Max was there on the floor with Jeb standing above her with a piece of the broken glass in is hand and appeared to be cutting Max's back. There was blood all around her, so he must have dug deep in her skin.

I jumped out of my stupor and, running on my sudden anger, charged at Jeb. As I did so I saw Ari shaking his head franticly out of the corner of my eye. I threw Jeb off of Max.

I looked at Max, and my anger immediately went away when I saw she was unconscious.

"Where's your bathroom?" I asked Ari.

"Follow me," his voice was strangely low and serious for a seven year old.

I asked Ella to help me carry Max, and she jumped as if electrocuted. She still had a dazed look on her face.

We got to the bathroom and I asked Ari to step out for a bit while I worked on Max.

"I've seen Maxi without a shirt on before. I know what to do." Well, I certainly wasn't expecting him to say that, and it made me extremely nervous. But, I let him stay anyway.

"Can you get me a wet rag?" I asked Ari. When I turned around, he already had one in his hand.

I began to gently wash away the blood and by the time the dry blood was gone, I was able to see what Jeb had been cutting into Max. There were various bruises and scars that looked several years old.

When I saw those, my blood boiled. _BICTH, SLUT, WHORE, FAT, WORHTLESS, FAILURE, _and many others that I refuse to say, were carved into her.

Max certainly wasn't fat; in fact I can see some of her ribs. And she most definitely isn't a failure. Even though I had to leave before she could barely toddle, I can still see the potential in her, though she was unconscious, I saw it when she was awake.

"Let me bandage her, she's my big sister," Ari almost begged, he was just so adorable that I couldn't resist the Bambi eyes he was giving me, so I let him bandage Max.

The way he did it was as if he'd done many times before. The look on his face was so much like Max's, it was scary.

When he finished, I couldn't help but notice that the bandages were a bit loose, so I pointed that out.

"Could you tighten them for me? I have to go deal with Jeb." He said that so innocently, it was hard to imagine this is what he had to go through every day.

I unwrapped then re-wrapped the bandages more tightly around Max's torso. Right when I finished she began to stir.

"Ella, help me carry her to her room." Thankfully, her room had her name on the door. Granted the name was wearing down, but it was still there. We set her down on her bed, after processing how small her room was.

In the corner I saw the guitar I bought before Max was born and felt a surge of pride.

"Mom," Ella spoke for the first time since we got here. "Can I talk to you?" I nodded and we stepped outside in the hallway. "We need to bring Max and Ari back with us."

"Don't worry Ella, we will."

"-please Mom, they can't stay here living like this-wait you said yes? Yes!"

We walked back into Max's room and saw that she was trying to sit up.

"You shouldn't do that. You'll hurt yourself." She just looked at me and continued to sit up.

I instinctively went to move a stray hair out of her face, but she just cringed slightly away from my touch. I slowly put my hand down, slightly upset, but I didn't think she would welcome me back into her life after fourteen years just like that. Especially when I came back with her half-sister that she never knew about.

We sat in silence for a moment until Max made a move to sit up.

"You need to rest. You lost quite a bit of blood down there. I don't even know how you're awake right now, but don't worry. You didn't lose enough to go to the hospital," I said pushing her back down gently.

She stood up against mine and Ella's protests, but they were meaningless. Max grabbed a pen and paper and wrote: _Need to deal with Jeb, _and left. Ella and I sat there until we simultaneously got up and followed Max.

Max, Ari, and a passed out Jeb, were in the living room.

"Max, Ari," I paused once again.

"We're taking you both back to Arizona with us," Ella blurted out.

Max made more gestures at Ari after a moment of her staring at us as if she was looking into our souls, I barely suppressed a shudder, but Ella did shudder.

"Why should I believe that you're my mother? And why should I trust you to take us across almost the entire continent when we just met?" Ari said.

I took off the locket that was around my neck, opened it up and showed it to her. The picture was of when she was a baby. Jeb was on the left and I was on the right, holding Max.

She stared into our souls once again, but more intense. It was as if she was trying to see our lie. When she saw that we were honest and sincere, she slowly and hesitantly nodded after those agonizing minutes of being stared down by my own daughter.

I smiled with relief and said, "You two should get packing, then. We have a motel room, and there is no way you guys are staying here one more night."

Max bent down to pick Ari up, but immediately gasped and winced and stood up, one arm bent awkwardly in order to hold her back, and the other around her ribs. Jeb must've broken one or two before we got to the kitchen/dining room.

Max instead grabbed one of Ari's hands, and walked upstairs to pack. Ari let go of her hand and instead he let Max lean on him for support.

After a few minutes they came back down with a duffle bag, a back pack and Max's guitar.

Once we'd put their stuff in the trunk except the guitar that was in the backseat with Max and Ari, we headed to the motel.

I looked in my rearview mirror and saw Ari huddled into Max's side and snoring. Max was running her hands through his spikey hair while he slept, and was looking out the window at all the houses, mailboxes and trees that seemed to zoom by.

I'm no psychic, but I could tell that this was going to be a new start for the both of them. Maybe even for Ella and I.

* * *

_Oh my Cheeseburgers! Thank you so much! I honestly never thought I would get this many reads and reviews. Sorry this chapter's so short, that just felt like a good place to end it._

_I got told off for putting lyrics here, so I won't be putting __entire__ songs on here any more._

_I'll be honest; I only made this account out of fun and because my head was going to explode from not telling anyone about this. But having people actually read it, is just, unbelievable._

_I will now ask a question out of pure randomness:_

_Would you prefer to ride a magical unicorn through a field of sunflowers with rainbow lasers coming out of your hands, or ride Jake the Dog with Finn the Human through the land of Ooo with Ice King shooting ice lasers in the sky?_


	3. I'm so sorry, please don't kill me

Ermahgerd. You must hate me. I am so sorry that I haven't updated in almost a month, but, I have my reasons.

I'm having trouble writing the third chapter. I have the whole plot figured out in my head, but I can't word it out on Microsoft Word. And my family is constantly on the computer and there's only one in the whole house. If you've read my blog then you know what I'm talking about.

Also, I need a beta reader, and I have no idea how to get one, so if you of you could tell me, that would be amaze-balls.

But the moment I finish a chapter, I'll post it.

But until then,c'est la vie.


	4. New Life

CH. 3. NEW LIFE

_Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride or any of the songs portrayed in this story_

* * *

_Previously:_

_I looked in my rearview mirror and saw Ari huddled into Max's side and snoring. Max was running her hands through his spikey hair while he slept, and was looking out the window at all the houses, mailboxes and trees that seemed to zoom by._

_I'm no psychic, but I could tell that this was going to be a new start for the both of them. Maybe even for Ella and me._

* * *

Max's POV

After about twenty minutes we finally pulled into the motel parking lot. I gently shook Ari's shoulder to wake him up. I got out, let Ari out then grabbed my guitar.

I seriously have no idea who this woman thinks she is. She just randomly said that I'm her daughter. Part of me wants to believe her, but the other part doesn't. But, she does have a sort of familiar and maternal aura around her that is like a very faint memory. When she showed me that picture, I swear my heart skipped a beat. That was Jeb, when he was actually _happy._ And Val was also there, but younger. So if she is my mom, then why did she leave only to come back and drop a bombshell?

As surprising as it is, though, it's pretty exciting. I've never had a female role model before, so this will be a different experience for both me and Ari. But as I think that, my head starts to fill with doubts.

What if Val, er, Mom, isn't as nice as she seems? Wow, that's going to take some getting used to. What if she turns out to be just like Jeb? Will she accept Ari as her own son, or treat him like useless garbage?

Before I realized it, we were already in our room. I must've been thinking longer than I thought. *

In the room there were two full size beds, a pullout couch, and a bathroom with a shower, a TV, and a mini-fridge. This is the nicest motel that I have seen by far. Though I haven't seen that many motels, but I did say by far.

"Ella and I will go and get you guys some lunch, okay? Be back shortly." I nodded in response while Ari turned on the TV. Whoa, wait, LUNCH?! Was it lunchtime already?! Time seems to fly by when you meet the rest of your family that completely abandoned you, doesn't it?

…Moving on…

* * *

I am sorry, Ari, but I am about ready to punch a hole into that TV screen.

After about 20 minutes of hearing an unrealistically high pitched laugh, you begin wondering:

_How can children stand this?!_

With my head in my hands, my ears went into 'cat-mode' as Ari calls it.

While I was thinking of ways to efficiently torture and kill SpongeBob, I heard the click of a door unlocking and the creak of a door opening.

"Hey, Max, Ari, we got some Burger King for you. I didn't know what to get for you guys; so I got a regular kid's meal and a small Sprite for Ari and a Whopper Beef, Bacon, and Cheese and a large Coke for Max." M-Mom says as she hands us our food. "I hope I got what you wanted."

"Thanks!" Ari exclaimed as he got his food, while I just nodded. Disappointment flashed briefly across Mom's face at that. Does she seriously think I'm going to talk to them, just like that?

Still, guilt washed over me when I saw that so I did the sign language thing.

"Max says thanks, too", Ari said through a mouthful of his cheeseburger.

An awkward silence took over us as we ate.

"Max, can you really play the guitar?" Ella asked while I was taking a sip from my drink. I nearly choked at her abrupt question, but nodded anyway. "Can you play something for us?"

"Ella, don't be rude. Max, you don't have to play if you don't want to." Mom said, but I could see that she wanted to hear me play, too.

I inwardly sighed, but nodded any way as I got up and walked over to my guitar, picked it up, and walked back over to the couch.

I contemplated for a moment, trying to decide what I should play. Then, I got it. This was one of my favorites, I almost smirked. Almost.

Once I tuned it, I began to fingerstyle the song _Hey Brother_ by _Avicii_. Once I began playing, Ari grinned like a madman. Okay, never mind. Bad simile.

My eyes unconsciously began closing as I strummed the all too familiar chords. My eyes were still closed as I savored the final note.

When I opened my eyes, Mom and Ella were in awe while Ari had a smile on his face that would put the Sun to shame.

Then I believe that the government got a noise complaint from Canada saying that one adult, one teenager, and one child were clapping and cheering way too loudly.

"Max that was amazing! Where did you learn to play like that? Do you think you can teach me?" Ella was just about exploding at that point.

"Max learned it all by herself. But I don't know if she would teach you…How do we know if you're worthy of her awesomeness?" I'm pretty sure you can guess who said that.

Ari earned a chuckle out of Mom at that.

"Do you play any instruments?" Ari translated for me to Ella.

"Yeah, I play the piano. Why?" That's good, then.

"Learning guitar should be fairly easy for you, then. The keys of a piano are similar to the neck of the guitar." Wow, Ari is getting good at reading the gestures as words and letters.

"As much as I hate to say this, you three, but I believe it's time we get some rest. I don't have enough money to buy plane tickets for all four of us, even with the passports**, so we have to get up early since we're driving back to Arizona." Mom said tiredly.

I looked at the little clock and saw that it read 10:32 P.M. Holy buttholes, how did time fly by like that?!

Ah, well, ce est la vie.

My last thought before I entered Hypnos' realm*** was that if this was how things are going to be from now on, I could get use to this. But there was still the drifting thought of Jeb coming for us going through my head. But for now, I should enjoy this new life while I have it.

* * *

_*does this make sense to anyone other than me?_

_**I don't know if this is true or not, so just go with it_

_***if you get this reference, you get a free hug from Batman_

_Words cannot describe how sorry I am right now. I swore that I would always update at least once a week, but I have obviously failed at that. I started writing the beginning of this chapter a while ago, actually, but then I started drawing a blank. I only just finished this chapter today at 2:47 P.M. Pacific time; no joke. I will always post a new chapter the moment I finish it, I swear on that._

_Thank you for reading my God-awful fanfic, and have a Happy Thanksgiving._


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